Over 13 per cent increase in cashless health programme's budget.

PESHAWAR -- The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Monday announced that budgetary allocations for its flagship Sehat Card Plus programme would go up over 13 per cent from Rs22 billion in the outgoing fiscal to Rs25 billion in the next, covering five more diseases.

During the 2022-23 budget speech in the provincial assembly, finance minister Taimur Khan Jhagra said following the inclusion of liver transplant in the Social Health Protection Initiative, branded as Sehat Card Plus in Jan this year, his government had decided to include bone marrow transplant, cochlear implants and treatment of multiple sclerosis, thalassaemia and advanced cancer in the cashless initiative.

He said those health problems would be covered in a phased manner and Rs2.5 billion had been set aside for them in the development component of health budget.

The minister said 800,000 people had received free care since the programme's extension to the entire province in Feb 2021.

Thalassaemia, bone marrow transplant, advanced cancer included in Sehat Card Plus scheme

Under the programme, more than 7.5 million families of the province are entitled to free services in over 1,100 hospitals across the country.

'The people will receive free medicines worth Rs10 billion and they include OPD patients,' he said.

Mr Jhagra said Rs53.6 billion had been earmarked for medical teaching institutions, allied hospitals and establishment of new medical colleges. These included Rs30.5 billion for MTIs, Rs14.8 billion for allied hospitals and Rs8.3 billion for establishment in four new medical colleges in Dir, Buner, Charsadda and Haripur, he said.

The minister also declared Fountain House Peshawar, Kohat Institute of Medical and Dental Sciences and district headquarters hospital as new MTIs, whereas district headquarters hospital and Women and Children Hospital in Charsadda would be considered to be one MTI.

In the new fiscal slated...